The port city of Wilmington opposed the Stamp Act. And, it had the support of influential politicians who led the resistance against the North Carolina Tories. Cornelius Harnett, a member of the General Assembly, rallied his opposition to the Sugar Act of 1764. When the British Parliament passed the Stamp Act the following year, the citizens of protested. On October 19, 1765, several hundred townspeople gathered to protest the new law and in the process burned an effigy of one person in the town who favored the Act. Then, toasted "Liberty, Property and No Stamp Duty." On October 31, another crowd assembled in the streets representing the symbolic funeral of "Liberty" but before they could burn their effigy, the patriots rallied. When Dr. William Houston was appointed the Stamp Receiver for Cape Fear he was surrounded by townsfolk who demanded to know whether he intended to enforce the Stamp Act and while the town bell rang and drums beat, he resigned his position. Meanwhile, Governor William Tryon attempted to mitigate the opposition to no avail. On November 18, 1765, he plead his case directly to prominent residents who answered that the law restricted their rights. Thus, when the stamps arrived on November 28th on the vessel H. M. Sloop Diligence, Tryon ordered that the stamps be kept on board. Thereafter, shipping on the Cape Fear River ceased.

But trouble continued to brew. On February 18, 1766, two merchant ships arrived at Brunswick Town without stamped papers. Each ship provided signed statements from the collectors at their respective ports of origin that there were no stamps available, but Captain Jacob Lobb of the British cruiser Viper seized the vessels. In response, numerous residents from the southern counties met in Wilmington and organized themselves as the "Sons of Liberty" pledging to block implementation of the Stamp Act. The following day, as many as a thousand men, including the mayor and aldermen of Wilmington, were led by Cornelius Harnett to Brunswick to confront the defiant Governor Tryon. A mob seized ships and forced royal customs officers and public officials in the region to swear never to issue stamped paper. Note: Parliament repealed the Stamp Act in March 1766.

New Hanover county was formed in 1729 and known as the New Hanover Precinct of Bath County, being that portion taken from Craven County. During 1734 parts of the precinct became Bladen Precinct and Onslow Precinct. It was named for the House of Hanover. In 1750 the northern part of New Hanover County became Duplin County and during 1764 another part of New Hanover County was combined with part of Bladen County to form Brunswick County. In 1875 the separation of northern New Hanover County went to form Pender County.

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Gadget

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About Me

After having researched multiple families from much has been learned about the pivotal roles which each o them played in building America. Everyone's ancestor whether in the history books or not, helped to build this country. I have probably traced over 100,000 names and am so familiar with the early colonists that I can just about open a discussion about any ancestor in the Southeast regions. If done properly, a tedious research will unfold the daily lives of each subject. I suppose that I am a fanatic now, however, an awareness of the experiences of your and my ancestors makes the history of America precious. I could sit down and talk (just about any) colonial ancestor with you. Hence, the desire to share my information with you. My researches are all heavily documented and I have discovered the intricate details which others cannot find. Jeannette Holland Austin www.georgiapioneers.com